Craig Gilroy (born 11 March 1991) is an Irish rugby union player who played wing for Ulster, and a former Ireland international. He was Ulster's player of the year in 2014–15, and was named in the Pro12 Dream Team twice.
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| Date of birth | 11 March 1991 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Place of birth | Belfast, County Antrim, Northern Ireland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 93 kg (14 st 9 lb; 205 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Methodist College Belfast | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Born in Bangor, County Down, he played Gaelic football and soccer in his teens. He attended Methodist College Belfast, where he played rugby in a team that won the Ulster Schools' Cup twice. After he left school, Justin Fitzpatrick signed him for Dungannon, and his form in the All-Ireland League led to him joining the Ulster academy in 2010.[2] He scored the first try at the Aviva Stadium, in an exhibition match between an Ulster-Leinster team against a Munster-Connacht team in August 2010.[3]
He made his first start for Ulster, scoring two tries, against Cardiff in the Magners League in November 2010.[4] He made 14 appearances, scoring 8 tries, in the 2010–11 season,[1] and was named Academy Player of the Year in the 2011 Ulster Rugby Awards.[5] The following season he made 29 appearances, scoring six tries, as Ulster made the 2012 Heineken Cup Final.[1] He was invited to train with the Ireland team for the 2012 Six Nations Championship, and made his debut for Ireland in May 2012 in a friendly against the Barbarians, scoring two tries.[6] He was awarded Ulster's Young Player of the Year for the 2011–12 season,[7] and was nominated for Irish Young Player of the Year, losing out to Munster's Peter O'Mahony.[citation needed]
In November 2012 he scored a hat-trick of tries for Ireland in a non-test match against Fiji at Thomond Park,[8] He made his international test debut, scoring one try, against Argentina soon after.[9] Early in the 2012–13 season, Gilroy signed a three-year contract extension to remain with Ulster until summer 2016.[10] In February 2015 he earned his 100th cap for Ulster in a 43–3 win over Benetton Treviso, scoring two tries in a Man of the Match performance.[11] He was named in the Pro12 Dream Team two years running, in 2014–15[12] and 2015–16.[13] He was Ulster's Player of the Year in 2014–15.[14] He scored a hat trick of tries for Ireland against Italy in the Stadio Olimpico in a 63–10 win in the 2017 Six Nations.[15] He made his 200th appearance for Ulster against Ospreys in December 2021.[16] In April 2023 Gilroy announced his departure from Ulster at the end of the season.[17]
References
edit- ^ a b c Playing statistics at ItsRugby.co.uk
- ^ "Craig Gilroy played in school team with Jackson and was Six Nations regular", Belfast Telegraph, 4 April 2018
- ^ "Leinster/Ulster cut loose as Aviva opens in spectacular try fest", Irish Examiner, 2 August 2010
- ^ Ciaran Donaghy, "New Ulster star born to be on big stage", Belfast Telegraph, 22 November 2010
- ^ Niall Crozier, "Boks bag top gongs at awards", Belfast Telegraph, 11 May 2011
- ^ "Barbarians 29–28 Ireland". BBC Sport. 29 May 2012. Retrieved 30 January 2013.
- ^ "Ferris lost for words as he scoops top Ulster award", News Letter, 12 May 2012
- ^ "Ireland XV 53–0 Fiji". BBC Sport. 16 November 2012. Retrieved 30 January 2013.
- ^ "Ireland show no mercy against Pumas". ESPN. 24 November 2012. Retrieved 30 January 2013.
- ^ IrishRugby.ie, Gilroy Pens Three-Year Ulster Deal, 21 November 2012, "Irish Rugby : Provincial Rugby : News : Gilroy Pens Three-Year Ulster Deal". Archived from the original on 17 February 2013. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
- ^ "Pro12: Ulster 43–3 Treviso". BBC Sport. 13 February 2015. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
- ^ "GUINNESS PRO12 Dream Team of the 2014/15 Season". pro12rugby. 11 May 2015. Archived from the original on 19 May 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
- ^ "Connacht dominate PRO12 awards". Planet Rugby. 8 May 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- ^ "Best, Gilroy And Cave Among The Ulster Award Winners", Irish Rugby, 1 May 2015
- ^ Whooley, Declan (11 February 2017). "Nine-try Ireland demolish feeble Italy in Rome". RTÉ. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
- ^ "200 Club | Craig Gilroy", Ulster Rugby, 30 December 2021
- ^ "Craig Gilroy keen to move abroad after confirming Ulster exit". the42. Retrieved 18 April 2023.